If you’re taking your kids on a big family trip anytime soon, don’t take them to some place that’s played out like Disney World or New York City. Take them where they REALLY want to go: East-central Tennessee!
TripAdvisor did a list of ten vacation spots in the U.S. that are ‘trending.’ Meaning more people are booking trips there now compared to last year. And number one was . . . Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
It’s in the Smoky Mountains, it has one of the biggest national parks in the country, and it’s about 20 minutes from Dollywood. DOLLYWOOD, baby. As in Dolly Parton.
The rest of the top ten goes: Orange Beach, Alabama . . . Destin, Florida . . . South Lake Tahoe, California . . . Jackson, Wyoming . . . Estes Park, Colorado . . . Anchorage, Alaska . . . Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania . . . Portland, Maine . . . and Kailua-Kona Hawaii.
So you could classify most of the places on the list as “outdoors-y and under the radar.” Of course, now this list puts them all ON the radar, but whatever.
And when you go international, the hottest up-and-coming spot is Tulum, Mexico . . . it had 74% more tourists this year than last year. It’s south of Cancun, and has some Mayan ruins overlooking the ocean.
